Olympic cyclist sentenced for underage sex

Former Olympic cyclist Mark Jamieson was given a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to four counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old girl, and one count of indecent sexual assault.

The Australian reported that on July 13, Judge Mark Griffin sentenced Jamieson to two years and six months, with a non-parole period of 12 months. The sentence was suspended, and Jamieson was placed on a three-year good behaviour bond.

He had a relationship with a 15-year-old girl when he was 24. He later tried to kiss a 15-year-old against her will. The incidents took place in late 2008 and early 2009.

According to The Australian, Judge Griffin told Jamieson that, as the adult, he should not have allowed his relationship with the girl to develop into something sexual, but that he “lacked the necessary wisdom and maturity to behave appropriately.”

At a previous court hearing Jamieson accepted full responsibility for his actions and apologized to the girls, their families and their friends.

Judge Griffin said they did not want him to go to jail and bore him no malice.

Jamieson had been one of Australia’s top cyclists. He won the junior world title for the individual pursuit in 2002, and was a member of the team pursuit line-up that won the world championship in 2006. He represented Australia at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

In February 2009, after he was chosen to compete in the world championships, the allegations became public and he surrendered his professional cycling licence.

The Standard reported that Judge Griffin said he believed the pursuit of a cycling career came at the expense of normal childhood development. He said that, coupled with untreated bipolar disorder, resulted in him being unaware of how inappropriate his behaviour was at the time. He pointed out that Jamieson had destroyed his career and was genuinely remorseful for his crimes.